THE three-day ECOWAS Workshop on the Role of the Media in Promoting Peace and Security, PSS, in West Africa ended in Abuja, on Wednesday June 27, with far-reaching recommendations, including capacity strengthening and structured engagement with the media to support the regional integration agenda.

The workshop’s communiqué urged the media to provide visibility to ECOWAS PSS initiatives and promote common understanding on the application of principles of sovereignty and subsidiarity. The media should also raise awareness and sensitize member States to domesticate and operationalise ECOWAS PSS protocols and instruments, and educate community citizens accordingly.

ECOWAS should engage the media to ensure that member States key into regional instruments and protocols relating to peace and security, including on counter-terrorism, maritime security, trans-human, human trafficking and irregular migration, the communiqué urged.

It called on the media to work in a professional manner with election management bodies in member States to promote the process for credible elections as well as prevention and peaceful resolution of election related conflicts.

ECOWAS should work with member States to create conducive environment for the operation of the media, the communiqué recommended, and called on the ECOWAS Commission to empower its officials on spokesperson communication strategy and promote effective partnership with the media. According to the communiqué, this will engender positive interface to enable community citizens to support and assume ownership of regional integration programmes and activities.

The workshop enjoined the media should go beyond the regular news reporting and carry out detailed reportage on socio-economic and political developments to promote peace and security in the region.

It further urged ECOWAS to maximize the benefits of new/social media, while the media should always verify information from “appropriate quarters” to neutralize the negative effects of social media, particularly fake news.

ECOWAS should also work with the media to promote the formation of a network of journalists devoted to regional integration and the enhancement of peace and security.

Stefania Marrone, who represented the EU Delegation to ECOWAS and Nigeria at the opening and closing ceremonies of the workshop, noted that ECOWAS has been doing very well in the area and peace security and would continue to enjoy the cooperation of the EU.

She urged the media to remain professional in their reportage, and avoid alarming the population. They should also tackle the problem posed by fake information.

Declaring the workshop closed, Gen. Francis Behansin, ECOWAS Commission for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, promised that ECOWAS would pay great attention to the recommendations by the workshop and work towards strengthening cooperation between it and the media.

– Jun. 29, 2018 @ 16:35 GMT |